After considering alternative sites in Northern Kentucky, LabOne announced last week that it will keep its operations in Cincinnati, though the actual site has not yet been determined.This is especially important to the COM because LabOne is our partner for future Third Frontier grants."By bringing in more research grants, this will help lead to more discoveries and better treatments," COM Dean William J. Martin II, M.D. said."I think we'll look back five years from now and say this decision was not just good for the University of Cincinnati, but great for the city and the state of Ohio."

President Zimpher to Speak at COM Faculty Forum

University of Cincinnati President Nancy Zimpher, Ph.D., will be the "speaker of the month" at the COM's April 27 Faculty Forum.This Forum will be held from 4- 5pm in MSB 7051.

Henney to Give First State of the Medical Center Address

Senior Vice President and Provost for Health Affairs Jane Henney, M.D., will give her first State of the Medical Center address in two sessions on Wednesday April 21, one at 2pm and another at 4pm in Kresge Auditorium.The title for this year's address is "Creating the Future."Refreshments will be provided.

Herr a Nominee for National Honor

Andrew Herr, Ph.D., assistant professor in Molecular Genetics and Ohio Eminent Scholar, has been selected as this year's nominee for The V Foundation for Cancer Research.We wish Dr. Herr best of luck in this national competition.We also want to note that this year's applicant pool was of exceptionally high quality, and to encourage those applicants to apply next year as well.

Three Earn CRA Designation

Congratulations to Charlotte Eidlin, Bill Hoffert and Jeff Ritchie, all from the Office of Sponsored Programs, for passing the Certified Research Administrator (CRA) exam.The CRA designation means that an individual has met the Research Administrators Certification Council's eligibility requirements and has demonstrated a level of knowledge necessary for a person to be a professional research or sponsored programs administrator.

Medical Center Retains Lobbying Firm

The Medical Center has retained Richard B. Colby with Colby & Company of Columbus, Ohio to join the university's state lobbying team.Colby & Company, which came highly recommended, is a leading national government affairs firm specializing in life sciences, economic development and information technology. The firm will assist the Medical Center in forming and burnishing relationships in the statehouse and ensuring that the Center's economic and legislative needs have a voice there. Richard B. Colby is currently meeting with the various deans and other leaders to ascertain those needs.

Paxton Receives Spirit of the Community Award

Fourth-year medical student James Paxton has been named the COM recipient of the Spirit of the Community award.This annual award is designed to honor a student who exemplifies a high standard of contribution to student life both within their college and the campus community.Mr. Paxton certainly fits the bill.He works as a mentor for the Cincinnati Public Schools; has been involved in the "Restoring Our Community" (RestOC) program in Over-The-Rhine; served as president of Physicians for Social Responsibility from 2000-2002; was founder of the Business of Medicine Club; and served on the Admissions committee, the LCME self-study task force, the Education Coordinating Committee and the Nutrition in Curriculum Task Force.Congratulations, Mr. Paxton!

Edwin Black to Lecture at COM

Investigative writer Edwin Black, whose best-selling book "IBM and the Holocaust" exposed IBM's deadly relationship with Adolf Hitler's Third Reich and America's secret strategy to create a "master race" will speak at the COM at Noon April 26 in MSB Room E351.His UC talk, "Eugenics: From Long Island to Auschwitz," is based on his latest work, "War Against the Weak," which chronicles America's own decades-long campaign to create a white, Nordic master race through the sham science of eugenics.Mr. Black's visit is part of Holocaust Awareness Weeks 2004: Facing Prejudice, a community outreach program sponsored by the Center for Holocaust and Humanity Education at Hebrew Union College's Jewish Institute of Religion. His talk is co-sponsored by the COM Dean's Office.

Regarding Last Week's TDL...

In last week's The Dean's List article "Cath Lab Reputation, Patient Load Growing," wementioned that the Lab was "under the direction of Daniel Snavely, M.D."Actually, the director of the Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory is Jerry Lierl, M.D.And in the article "Reproductive Medicine Research Department NIH Contract Renewed," we neglected to mention that Michael Thomas, M.D., is the principal investigator.

Food for Thought:

"How are researchers going to do research if they keep patient groups at bay?" (NIH Director Elias Zerhouni, March 3, 2004)

Queen City 101

When passenger train service was inaugurated between Cincinnati and Chattanooga on March 5, 1880, a newspaper reporter dubbed the train the "Chattanooga Choo-Choo." The Cincinnati Southern Railroad, owned by the City of Cincinnati, operated that first train.